Rancho Santa Fe Road will be open to both north and southbound traffic

Super Tanker Drops Right by NBC 7 Camera

Our NBC 7 cameras were rolling when a super tanker dropped retardant over the Cocos Fire in San Marcos. (Published Thursday, May 15, 2014)

At least three homes have been destroyed and one damaged in an erratic fire burning in San Marcos, just east of the Poinsettia Fire in Carlsbad, that has forced the evacuation of California State University, San Marcos and 21,600 homes.

Watch: Fire Burns in San Marcos

A fire in San Marcos led to the evacuation of Cal State University San Marcos, as well as homes in the area. Check out this footage of the fire. (Published Wednesday, May 14, 2014)

The Cocos Fire that started in Coronado Hills Wednesday afternoon, one of at least nine raging county-wide, continued its southward path Thursday morning. Despite planned air drops overnight by fire officials, the fire had spread to 700 acres by early Thursday morning, up from 450 acres the night before.

The flames spread down the hillside behind the CSUSM campus. Everyone there has been evacuated, and the school will remain closed through Saturday.

The university even decided to cancel its commencement ceremonies on Friday and Saturday because "the safety of our students, faculty, staff and families is our primary concern," according to CSUSM's website.

As the Burgesons and others fled the area, traffic was jammed in San Elijo Hills and other streets streaming from the burning hillside.

San Marcos couple Brian and Veronica said they were both at work when they heard about the flames climbing toward their home.

“I got a call from actually my president that said, ‘You got to get home, and it’s in your neighborhood,'” said Brian.

His first thought went to their cat Rusty locked inside. They were forced to park about a mile away, so they ran the rest of the way to their pet.

“You can replace homes and belongings, but you can’t replace animals and humans. We were fortunate enough to get some hard drives [too],” said Brian.

Nevertheless, Veronica was shocked to see the devastation facing her.

“It’s pretty sad because it’s our nature, and it’s gone,” she said.

Fire crews will continue through the night, but they are concerned for the area of Cycad Drive and Coronado Hills Drive, where they fear the flames will swing around and threaten a home tucked into the hillside.